Schrödinger's Cat
by WolfOfHearts
Summary: Your name is Andrew Hussie, and you are not quite sure how being abducted and killed has thrown you into what is perhaps the stupidest and most important adventure of your life. You ARE sure the Gigapause won't be ending any time soon. (A cracky Pokemon/Homestuck fic, more Poke. Rated M for swears and later violence.)
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: I'm doing it. I'm posting this stupid crack fic and no one can stop me. Although reviews would be lovely; I can see you guys, feel free to say hello! I don't bite. **

**Anyway, here we go. Read at your own risk.**

* * *

A man lies on his back in a room. It is not his normal room, nor his normal morning. He looks oddly familiar in some way, but you cannot tell how. He sits up, glancing around with a worried expression on his face, looking directly at you for a moment before moving on. His hands are tied tightly behind his back, and there is a bruise blossoming like a deadly flower over his right eye.

What is this man's name?

**_[Andrew Hussie]_  
**

You sense the seriousness of this for once. Good.

Your name, as previously mentioned, is Andrew Hussie. You're the mind behind the webcomic Homestuck, and had been taking a small vacation from work on said comic. It'd been one night out of your study, one night- and look what's happened! You assume you've been kidnapped, judging by how your hand are tied and your head hurts like someone threw a bowling ball directly at it.

You're in a room, the locked door behind you. The floor is covered with a dulled carpet and the walls have huge cracks lacing up and down them. There isn't much else besides yourself in here; just a table with a disc set on it, and a small collection of dying plants in the corner. There's a window on the wall...it looks unlocked. Maybe if you could use your hands, you could open it and escape this stuffy room.

But you need to get the rope off. That's the first objective in getting out of here, you think.

Besides that, what will you do?

**-AH: Stand.**

You manage to push against the door with your body and slide your way up onto your feet, nearly tripping over yourself and crashing back down. You try and pry the rope off of your hands using the doorknob; it fails. With stinging wrists, you try half heartedly to undo the knot with flailing fingers. After this produces nothing as well, you give up entirely.

**-Inspect disc. **

You walk over to the table, looking at the disc placed on it. It's yours; the final acts of Homestuck. You know you didn't bring this with you. You were taking a break from it! How could the disc have ended up here? Was it taken by the same person who kidnapped you? Why the hell would anyone kidnap you, anyway? You don't think you're kidnapping material...though it's a little flattering, in a weird and slightly terrible way. Maybe they're nice? No, that's crazy. Stop it. Kidnappers are not nice people. You sigh, and the sigh seems to echo in the room. Creepy- but interesting...!

Gah, you need to get out of here. You're quickly losing your cool and your common sense.

**-Examine window.**

You move over to the window, looking out into the evening. The sun is setting over a turbulent sea and wait- you are pretty sure your homestate is not next to the sea, not this close. How far did your kidnapper take you? You shiver. The building -house?- is perched on a cliff above the waves; you can hear the muffled crashes and splashes through the glass. Suddenly escaping through the window doesn't seem as great as you'd first hoped. It's a long drop to the water below, and you're pretty sure it's not safe- it'd basically be the equivalent of jumping out a two story building face first onto concrete.

Yeeeeeah, not safe. You lick your lips worriedly, tasting salt and blood. How in the world are you going to get out of this mess?

The door behind you unlocks and opens with a long, high pitched creak, someone -or something- stepping into the room. The door shuts behind them and you feel your blood turn to ice. Now you're really fucked.

**-Open the window?!**

No hands, remember? Oh god, you're going to die, aren't you? The thought sears itself into the front of your mind. You are trapped and what you are certain is your kidnapper is standing behind you, probably here to finish you off. With wide eyes and a panicking heart, you slowly turn to face them.

It's a woman, cloaked in deep velvet purple. She holds a small silver 9mm pistol in her left hand, and in her right a pair of scissors. She smiles at you, and your blood deep freezes. It's the smile of a predator about to catch their helpless prey. The woman shakes her head at you. "It's nothing personal," she says. You stare at her, throat dry. "W-what?"

"All this. It isn't personal." She steps towards you. "I'm simply taking care of the few beings that would interrupt my plans. Although I should thank you; I've gained quite a good follower from your...what was it, Alternia? Yes, that's it." The woman shrugs. "So thanks for that." You swallow nervously as she steps closer. "I don't understand what you're talking about," you say, voice trembling. She gives you a mournful look, frowning. "But of course. And I'm dreadfully sorry about that. Still, it will be better you go without any idea of why."

What the hell is this lady talking about?! A follower from Alternia- that doesn't make any sense. Alternia's a fictional place! How could she have a follower from there? She's crazy, you decide, and this decision just makes you even more afraid. She grins wider at you. "However...I have decided to play a little game with you. Come here and let me cut off that rope." You stare at her, blinking rapidly. Oh, hell no. You are not failing for that! Not in a mill-

"It's either my game or this bullet through your skull without a chance of living."

Okay, fine, fine! You'll let her do it.

**-Approach. But carefully! Don't go dying just yet.**

Shut up. You're pretty sure you're going to die whether you like it or not, you think. She's just messing with you. You take a deep shaking breath and then walk over to her, turning around to expose your tied up wrists. Her breath brushes your neck. "Good little human," she hisses as she roughly cuts the rope off. You feel one of the blades run across your wrist and try not to move. The metal is cold and stings, but you feel no blood. She pushes you away and you ungracefully trip and crash into the wall. The woman laughs. "Are you ready for the game?"

You turn again to face her, window to your back. "Yes," you say, wanting to take it back the moment it leaves your lips. The woman gives you a actual smile- which is even more terrifying then her fake ones. "I'm going to count to ten," she says, "and if you have not jumped out that window by the time I reach zero, your brains are going to be splattered across these walls." She folds her hands behind her back. "I'll start once you move."

Your heart begins to pound. Oh, we're playing this kind of game. Fine! Hahaha...oh god. You whimper through your teeth and glance around the room wildly. There has got to be a weapon of some sort here.

But there's nothing here. Just the table -which you cannot lift- and the disc. Hold on. Your eyes widen. Maybe you could use the disc to stab her in the neck? No, she'd kill you by the time you reached her. Perhaps it's just best to take it and jump. Your gaze flicks to the woman; she meets it and you shudder. "What's your name, anyway?" you blurt out. She does not answer; she just clicks her tongue disapprovingly at you.

Alright. You've stalled long enough. Time to grab the disc and get out of here.

**-Begin the game.**

You step towards the desk and almost in time with your footstep, the woman begins to count.

"Ten."

You rush over, snatching up the disc and shoving it into one of your pant pockets. You don't glance back at the woman as "nine" passes over her lips. You run back to the window and pull at it. It seems stuck. "Eight." You pull harder, whispering panicked prayers under your breath. This has to have been planned, you think. Why else would a perfectly good window get stuck? A couple of logical reasons begin to pop into your head in order to combat this notion, but you shoo them away. A "seven" reaches your ears and you pull even harder. With a reliving click, the window slides up and open. You clamber out the best you can and balance perilously on the small window still.

"Six."

You look down. It really is a long drop, and you still aren't too sure if you'll survive it. It's now you spare a moment to glance back into the room; the woman stares with cold eyes at you, tapping her foot. "Five," she says flatly, and you return your attention to the sea below. Like it or not, you have to jump.

You take a deep breath.

**-Jump!**

You leap out of the still and begin to plummet as the woman calls out "four". Wind whips around you, and taste of salt is overpowering. Somehow you've managed to end up following back first, which is a little worrisome- you don't want to break your spine. You try and calm yourself as the waves get louder and louder, but your breathing is nonexistent in the din while the heartbeat in your ears does not provide any comfort.

You quit trying to act cool and calm as a whimper-y scream slips from your throat. You're scared and you honestly do not want to die. It's funny, really; you've never thought about how you would die or what it would be like. And now you'll probably never get to think about those questions, not if the impact with the water kills you. You can feel tears pricking your eyes, but you refuse to give into them, to your kidnapper. You swallow and blink them away. A scream is all they're getting!

Nothing more.

* * *

The pain and darkness are so sudden and not where they're supposed to be when they finally come.

They are quick and precise: straight though your chest amidst a flapping of wings. You hardly have time to think about how you haven't even hit the water before the darkness and sea rushes over you and drags you down. All you can see is red and darkening blue and then nothing. You're trying to breathe and getting water -so much water- and coughing does nothing. It just brings more water, pain and darkness. There's a tightening in your lungs and chest, and you flail weakly as you let out your last bubble of oxygen.

Everything's fading so fast once you start to drown. The redness disappears and takes your vision with it, leaving you floating in darkness with pain as your terrible companion. You try to imagine a happier place, and for some odd reason can only bring up the home page of MSPA. You don't care; you cling to the idea that you're just falling asleep after you've posted the rest of the comic. A small smile crosses you face as you relax. It's fine, the website whispers, it's posted. They'll see it. "Are you sure...?" you think slowly. I promise, it replies. Everything's okay, let go. You can go. You'll be fine, trust me. It begins to hum a song you think you should recall, but for some reason can't. It's probably not important anyway. You do want to ask something, though- something that actually matters. But how can you ask anything when you have begun to forget your own name?

A second voice whispers in your head along the first one's soft humming: Let go. Listen to your site, let go. Everything is fine. You are asleep.

The image and voices disappear as you finally let yourself crash into the deepest darkness you have ever known.

* * *

**A/N: Hope you enjoyed this mess. I'll leave you guys with a little fun fact- when I first started this story, the main antagonist (serial killer lady here) had no name besides the acronym MA, which I changed to Ma. This, however, is no longer her name. So yeah, little tidbit for you.**

**Next chapter soon.**

**EDIT: Had to get creative in making the commands stand out. Don't know why it wouldnt allow the arrows...**


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: So I decided, after looking over this chapter for a while, it's time for a update to this story. In this chapter we have: the intro of Moony, a shocking development, and the start of the true crackfic-y goodness. Enjoy.**

* * *

**-Be Andrew Hussie.**

You cannot be Andrew Hussie at this time, because he's currently unconscious. However, there is a white and pink ribbon-y sparkledog that's coming into your line of sight. They look like some sort of new fangled magical girl thing, with those flesh bows and pastel colors. Very modern. Or something.

Anyway, you'll take what you can get, right?

**-Be ribbon-y sparkledog.**

You are now the ribbon-y sparkledog, who seems appalled at the lack of proper respect and introduction. I mean, come on, what fool approaches the aid of the Kalos champion without bowing to their knees? Utter blasphemy.

Your name is Sir Moonington, though you are usually called Moony by your friends. You're a three-year old Sylveon and you are a permanent member of your Trainer's team. This pleases you, because how else should it be? You are her favorite, after all!

You have a large variety of interests, that of which include battling, spending time with your Trainer, and attempting to teach the ruffians on your team proper manners. God, they're all a bunch of animalistic slobs. And the words that they say! It pains your ears and makes you bleed red. But it's all for them, because you can't stand seeing the other wonderful members of such a elite team act so poorly.

And because you're so nice.

You are currently sniffing at the end of a blood trail that has led you through the woods near Laverre Town, all the way to the small cemetery near the old abandoned house. You found this mess after moving away from your parties campsite to look for firewood. Oh, you hope they haven't reverted to their silly old selves while you are away. It's taken ages to train them...and ugh. You stepped in the nasty stuff! You gag, and then turn your attention back to the task at hand- which is to say, no task at all.

What will you do?

**-Investigate end of blood trail.**

Even though you are totally grossed out by the horrible smelling stuff, you put your nose to the ground and begin to paw around the marsh near you. The blood seems to be pooling around a single gravestone here. It's pretty spooky, and you shiver. You have had it with spooky stuff today, after Yellow gave you such a fright. You sniffle at the gravestone. It seems to have been disturbed; the ground seems to have been freshly turned.

Oh god, does that mean...? Uggggggh, gross.

**-Dig, you sissy.**

You bristle but begin to dig into the ground, flinching as your paws grow wet and dirty. You hate doing stuff like this! It's always so gross and uncomfortable and just ugh. You are sure you're getting blood on you, and that makes it all ten times worse. Plus the fact you're digging into a grave. Ugh!

For a while you are just dig through earth, the clods of soil flying behind you. And then-! Your paws strike something furry and soft, and you recoil with a shriek. Holy Arceus, what the heck is that! You sniff at the exposed limb, an arm that looks as if it's belong to a Braxien. It's warm, the shoulder wrapped in a bloodied bandage. You hesitantly poke the arm, but nothing happens. You scoot away with a sigh of relief. Thank goodness, it's de-

"Argh..."

Okay, maybe it isn't dead. Maybe not. It's okay, don't panic. For the love of all things holy, don't panic, Moony. You attempt to keep a clear head as your heart tries to escape your chest and your stomach turns in knots. Be calm, be calm-!

**-Give into panic.**

You submit to terror. "Oh my Arceus! Run, flee! The undead are here, curse Yvetal! Flee for your liiiiives!" You then take your own advice, dashing away while still hysterically screaming into the bushes around the cemetery. You cower in a bush, shaking violently. You have always given thought to horrible, supernatural creatures and tried to get your teammates prepared and to grasp the true danger. You have always believed one day the supernatural would rise up and demolish the would of the living. You teammates...would never listen.

Until now! You are certain; you are witnessing a zombie come back to life right in front of your own eyes, and it is terrifying yet awe-inspiring. The zombie -you were right! It is/was a Braxien!- is slowly pulling itself from the earth, shaking twigs and mud and blood from its wretched fur. Decay seems to have stripped it of the fluff in its ears and around its waist, and it wears stained clothing; perhaps the garments were from the old Trainer. The shirt is ripped down the chest and between the folds of fabric you can see a scar, slicing right down the middle. It is huge, and ugly as a Feebas covered in mud.

The zombie takes a step, stumbles, and collapses in a heap only a foot from its grave. It shakes it head, dead eyes rolling listlessly around in their sockets. It coughs, wipes the blood that flies out of its mouth onto its wrist, and then glances around with a curious expression. It is still lying on the ground, though.

It is completely and entirely disgusting.

**-Approach zombie Braxien.**

You step towards the zombie, legs shaking in fear and anticipation to run away. It doesn't look up at up until you're standing right above it, softly poking it in the ear. It lifts its head when you do this, and stares at you unblinkingly for a heartbeat before letting its face drop back down into the mud. You think you hear it mumble something about ribbons, but you aren't sure. You poke it again, but the only response you get is a rapidly twitching ear. You let out a huff. This must be one of the stupid zombies; certainly they'd be able to speak clearly! "You're quite the boring undead phenomenon," you grumble, and the Braxien lifts it head again. Blood trickles from its mouth as it begins to laugh. You are quite startled, to say the least. What nerve, to laugh at the elite!

"So this...is the afterlife. Or maybe I'm just dreaming? Either way, this kind of sucks." Its chuckles die down after a moment and it flicks its eyes up at you, cocking its head. "Do you know anything about this, sparkledog?"

You spit in anger, teeth gritted. "Address me properly!" you bark, the Braxien flinching at your yell. "I am the heart and soul of the team that saved this ungrateful and pathetic world. I demand the respect that I deserve!" The zombie lets out a soft groan, ears flattening against its head. "Okay, okay, I will, Your Highness. Just shush; you're making my headache worse with all your yelling. I have no idea what you mean, though. What are you on about?" You roll your eyes, sitting down with a huff.

"Do the undead lose their petty memories when they revive, or are you just stupid?" The Braxien glares at you, the first emotion you've seen ignite in its cloudy eyes. "Last time I checked," it says in a matter-of-fact tone, "I was pretty smart." You meet its eyes, fire beginning to burn in the back of your head. "Well, with the impression you're currently making and such a weak response, you still seem unintelligent." The Braxien bites its tongue as it hisses through its teeth, "Then enlighten me, Your Highness. Show me I'm the idiot here; I am ready for the onslaught of bullshit." Its voice is laced with quiet venom and you shudder.

It actually seems a little coherent and lively, now that you've began to talk. In fact, the little asshole has you trapped; you either have to look like a fool and obey him like you are the peasant, or look even more foolish and admit that your accusations were wrong. You really don't want to do either, but oh well. A elite must do whatever it takes to maintain their honorable reputation.

Even if it means stooping to same level as a living Braxein corpse who apparently is as uncivilized as your teammates.

"Let me put this to you in simple terms," you say slowly, each word drawn out and clear. "There was a dreadful organization called Team Flare that were attempting to destroy the current world and rebuild into their own beautiful standards. They would have managed to actually achieve their hideous goals had it not been for me, my Trainer, and our team. One by one, they fell until we reached the organization's heart. We ripped the black, beating glob of death from its arrogant perch and killed it, disbanding Flare and recruiting the Legendary Xerneas Inkheart in the process." You take a breath, eyes half closed as the memories replay in front of your eyes.

"Then we went to the League, and simply annihilated the Elite Four. We swiftly defeated the Champion and took our rightful place as the best. There was a parade in celebration of our radiant exploits, in which we received the Honor of Kalos award- as it should have be and was. Even when AZ challenged us, we won easily and showed that we were the owners of this young region. Since then, we've held the spot of Champions for two years and running." You puff out your chest proudly. "This why everyone bows and trembles before me and my companions. We are simply the best!"

The Braxien stares with a deadpan expression at you, blinking a few times before saying flatly: "You saved the world?" Your frown deepens. "You have no regard for poetic storytelling, do you, zombie?" It snorts, and you see a smirk creep onto its face. "That was just a lot of purple prose and opinions," it says. "Not the best way to approach retelling a event, buddy."

Smug bastard! You growl under your breath. Thinks it knows anything about stories! No one is better at storytelling then you, and you know it. This constant show of boldness and bravado is getting under your skin. Who does this zombie think they are, to say such stupid, stupid things with such certainty?

God, what a asshole.

The zombie reaches out and grasps your paw, making you screech and jerk away. It arches an eyebrow, a amused look crossing its face. "What's the matter?" it asks, and you bite back a retort. You will not stoop to arguing with the undead and lowly. Your reputation simply cannot allow it. "So, zombie," you say, and its ears twitch towards you, "are you dead or not?" It is silent for another moment before saying slowly, "I have no idea, honestly." Your frown grows ever deeper, beginning making you look like you drank some bitter coffee and didn't spit it out. "What I'm implying," you continue, "is a question of do you need my assistance?" The Braxien shrugs. "You know what, sure. You seem nice enough." You gape at it, utterly shocked.

You had not expected it to actually take your offer, not to actually have to go through with it. You growl softly. Again with this crafty trickster! You have to hand it to the zombie, though; it has successfully managed to drag you down into the dirt with it and shove your face straight into its disgusting blood. Ugh.

**-Go through with your offer.**

"Alright then, hold still." You carefully drop to your belly and nudge your nose under the Braxien. Being so close to cold and scarlet ground makes you want to hurl, but you hold your breath and scramble under the zombie, maneuvering it onto a stable position atop your back. It relaxes as you slowly rise up, and you realize it is attempting to make the load less painful for you.

You inhale sharply. That is quite an insult! You are of elite status; you need no pity or aid. How dare this mutt try and make you seem weaker then you are! You do not mention this, though. You grit your teeth, tail waving in hard and furious time with your bows. You'll show this peasant who's the alpha around here!

You begin walking, trying to avoid stepping in the blood on the ground. The ground squishes and you can't help but wince every time it makes a sucking noise on your paws. You follow the trail out of the cemetery and back through the woods, flinching at every odd noise in the now dark forest. Your ears twitch as the Braxien murmurs, "Is all this my blood?" He sounds genuinely impressed, and your nose twitches in disgust.

"I...don't know," you answer, swallowing. You know it's way too much blood for a corpse to have left, but...it's still warm, and still brilliant red. The zombie doesn't seem to be bleeding anywhere except from the wound on its chest, and that's only a little. That would alone could not make this much blood...weird. You shiver. Really, really weird.

Ugh, hadn't you already said no more spookiness for today?! It's like the universe is against you for some reason; how else could you explain this horrible series of events that have befallen you in the past weeks? First there was the sudden outbreak in crime, then the murders, and now your own Trainer is in hiding because a killer is after her! And now this whole zombie thing! It is almost too much to try and comprehend.

You walk in silence, aware of the zombie looking around every so often. It is as if it is a child, and you have no inclination of teaching it. Let it learn on its own; maybe if it makes a big enough mistake, it will die and be out of your ribbons forever.

You grimace. Well, Maple, it seems your teaching have gone to waste. I am once again being a 'snobby little jerk' and frankly I enjoy it. So thanks but no thanks, my fair green lady. You sigh. Poor girl, really, thinking she can change the elite. She shouldn't have even tried.

As far as you know, the elite cannot be changed- and that goes for the lowliest of the low as well.


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: Another early chapter, yay! It took me a while to figure out the ending of this one, but I think I've done it well enough. In this chapter, we met the rest of the team, have only one command prompt, and have a peaceful dinner interrupted. Enjoy!**

* * *

"Moon Moon!"

You jump back as vines whip around your legs, the Braxien tumbling off your back. It doesn't cry out though; just struggles up and brushes itself off, standing next to you on shaky legs. You glare at the vine's source: Maple, the Venasaur, also known as the "Secondary Starter". The large turtle creature lumbers over to you, giving you a small grin. "Moon Moon! Where've ya been? We were getting worried." You sigh, flipping your paw at her.

"Just dealing with elite issues," you say, and Maple laughs. "Ah, right, that. How'd it go?" Your eye twitches slightly. "Fine," you answer, the word spit from between your teeth, "absolutely fine." The Venasaur's gaze jumps from you to the zombie as it shuffles its feet. "Who's this?" she asks, and you sigh loudly. "Some zombie, I haven't asked for a name or title. It probably doesn't have one." Maple narrows her eyes, her flower shivering. "Well, that's pretty shitty of you, Moon Moon. I thought Tundra talked to ya about this stuff!" You narrow your eyes back at her. "Oh, did he? I don't recall."

"Don't you sass me, little dog. Surely that's not above your elite status?"

"You wouldn't know anything about the duties, since you never take time to learn them."

"Oh, for the love of Arceus. If you're not going to be nice, then I will. Come on, then, foxy."

The Venasaur unwraps her vines from around your legs and lift the zombie off the ground onto her back. It blinks, gently readjusting one of her petals before settling down into the crook she'd placed it in. Maple grins, glancing over at you. "See, Moon Moon? Niceness." She looks up and over at the zombie. "Now, what's your name?"

"Andrew Hussie," it says, and Maple nods, reaching a vine up to shake hands with it. Your eye twitches again. Such a...human name. It makes a little sense, given how it's wearing human clothing and carrying a bag, but such a title! What Trainer thinks they were so special as to give their Pokemon a human name to call themselves by? You huff. At least this explains the stupid boldness this "Andrew Hussie" has been showing.

Ugh.

**-Question AH**

"If that's really your name," you say, making Andrew look over at you, "then who was your Trainer? What deluded creature took it upon themselves to attempt to usurp my glorious reign?" He opens his mouth to reply, but Maple beats him to it. "Moon Moon! That's a horrible thing to say to a new party member! I'm sure this little fella's Trainer wanted no such thing. Try and think before you speak, little dog." You put your nose into the air. "Look at the sky, Maple. Do you see anything flying up there? Of course you don't. Now, take that number and apply to how much I actually care." The Venasaur rolls her eyes. "Yeah, yeah, zero. Get more creative in your comebacks; you've used that more times then I can count."

Ah, the little cabbage turtle strikes again. "Alright, I'll try. But only since you asked so politely, Maple." The Venasaur grins a bit, and you can't help but smile as well. Then your attention returns to the Braxien. "New question: if you are not actually a zombie -which I still have reason to believe you are- then why were you in a grave in a remote cemetery deep in some ominous woods?"

The Braxien furrows his brow. "I...jumped out of a widow. Yeah, jumped out of a window and fell into the sea, where I think I got stabbed through the chest, I remember now. It wasn't a very honorable death." He laughs bitterly. "Which is why I'm pretty sure this is the afterlife." Maple and you exchange a look.

"See?" you whisper. "He's a nutcase, a brainwashed zombie!" Maple shakes her head. "Maybe he's delirious, or hit his head on something, Moon Moon. Whatever it is or was, we gotta help him out." With that, Maple trudges on ahead, you trying to keep up best you can. "Also," the Venasaur adds, "did you get the firewood?"

You give her a scowl. "Well, I would have if not for the blood trail he left!" Maple simply sighs and says, "At least ya got some good in you, little dog. Don't worry, I'll get the wood. You get Andrew here settled and introduced to the rest of the party." She glances up at the Braxien again. "Wait, what do you want us to call you?"

"Whatever you like, I suppose. But thanks for asking."

You grit your teeth. For some Arceus forsaken reason, you have found yourself loathing this zombie fox. You can't explain it, but you know it's here to stay. It's like a hot, black fire burning in your gut, eating away at your insides. You simply hate him to your very core.

This dark fire is quite intoxicating, actually.

You think you could get used to this hate.

* * *

The party campsite is bustling when you, Maple and Andrew arrive. Tundra has started cooking without the firewood, Talon is running back and forth from the coolers to hand him the needed supplies, and Yellow...is playing some sort of game with washer rings. You exhale loudly, and the whole camp turns their heads towards you. "Moony!" Yellow yells, dropping her washers and running over to you. She scoops you up in a hug, and you flail uselessly in the Heliodisk's grip. "Yes, yes, I am happy to be back in your presence as well, little failure. Now let me go."

She drops you, and you cough, shaking your ruffled fur. "Quite a greeting today," you say, and Yellow smiles. "I was worried, Moony. I thought you'd left forever!" Her voice raises on the last word and her face falls a bit. You brush against her legs reassuringly, meeting her eyes. "Do not worry about me, failure. I am the elitist of us all; I will not go down if it is not my time, and I would never leave you helpless weaklings behind. We are kin, do you not remember?" She laughs a bit. "Yeah, I do. And you still talk funny!" You smile at her. "It is my nature, Yellow. You know it will not go away, and you also know you like it." She nods happily, eyes bright. "Yeah!"

You feel your heart swell as Yellow gives you one last big grin before running over to Maple. She is a good kid, you think. She is so young though, and so naive...not even evolution and trauma galore has killed her childishness. Yellow is perhaps the only member of your team you really like; you just cannot find it in yourself to hate her, or to place yourself above her. You accept this though- it is certainly just another part of your honorable elite responsibilities.

Your attention turns to Talon, catching the large bird's eye. He comes over to you, wings beating lazily. A package of meat is clenched in his claws. "What's up?" he asks. You give him your best stern gaze. "Talon," you say briskly, "I need you to keep an eye on that zombie. It is of most importance that we never let our guard down with such a unstable entity in our midst." Talon trills, the bird equivalent of laughing. "Oh, c'mon, Mooncake. He seems friendly enough; he's just sitting over there chatting with Yella. If anyone can talk with that kid like you do, they're fine in my book." You glare daggers at him. "Talon," you say exasperatedly, and he sighs. "Alright, alright, I will. Just know not everything's as bad as you think it is." With that, the bird gently flies over to sit on a tree branch above Maple's little group.

You grumble under your breath. Even Talon is enthralled by this stupid fox. Oh well, you'll have plenty of chances to show them yet. And at least the bird listened to you for once; you're making progress! This cheers you up, and you wag your tail. Yes, even a little progress is a thing to celebrate!

"Moony, where did this guy from?"

You jump at Tundra's voice, spinning around to face him. He's huge, much taller then you, and you find yourself cowering just a little. Tundra is the alpha here, no matter how much you would like to change that. The damn Delphox is just too well trained and too powerful; besides, the rest of the team would gladly back him up. "What was thaaaat?" you say slowly, meeting his eyes with your best smile. The fox crosses his arms. "I'm pretty sure you heard me, Moony. Where did you get this Braxien?" You cock your head. "Well, I found this ruffian in the woods. Nothing more than that. Why, does that bother you?" Tundra fixes you with a stern glare, and you look away.

"Yes, it does bother me," he says, voice in a growly tone you have never heard before. "It bothers me a lot. Who is this guy, really? How do we know he isn't going to use us, hurt us, or hurt our human friends?" One of your eyes twitch as you reply, "I would run him out of here," you say, "but I already made an elite promise to aid him. Also, he's got a posse that I would rather bit mess with." You watch the Delphox uncertainly. Tundra can be very unstable without human supervision, and this has just gotten worse over the months.

"You have me," he says. "We could KO the rest of the team and chase him away," He them seems to sense the absurdity of his proposal and rubs a paw against his temples. "No, nevermind. Turning into a traitor isn't the right answer. I'll figure something out." With that he stalks back to the fire- but not without a mumble of "And you'll be first to know about it" in your direction. You pad after him, cowering still. "I'm happy you seem to share my hatred," you say cheerfully- and then yelp in pain as the Delphox kicks you across the face. "I don't hate him," he growls, turning away from you. "I just distrust him. Learn the difference, Moonington."

You sit down in shocked silence, face stinging. What's the difference, anyway? Distrust, hatred, it's the same kind of deal. You sigh bitterly. No one seems to share your anger, not even Tundra. This is very disappointing, but not unexpected. When Talon arrived from overseas, the party welcomed him with open arms, so it seems natural they'd accept this Andrew as well. You spit. My comrades are naive, belly up idiots.

Talon's left his post and returned to cooking with Tundra, leaving you lonely, so you muster up your elite responsibility-ness and walk over stiff legged to Maple's group. Yellow is leaning against the tree, Maple parked next to the trunk. The Braxien sits on a thick root, staring up at the tree with a odd expression. You sit next to Maple, rolling your eyes. "Look at him," you mutter, "all wonder and confusion. It's all an act, you know. He's going to try and kill us." Maple snorts. "Still on about that, Moon Moon? Come on, lighten up. He's pretty cool; before you came over here, he was telling us about his Trainer's webcomic!" You glance at Andrew, unimpressed. _That would_ _explain the superiority_ co_mplex, then. He and his Trainer must be popular on the internet for this webcomic thing. How silly._

"What kind of webcomic?" you ask.

"It's like a fantasy adventure of some sort. These kids play a game that ends the world and then there are these aliens that play the same game and it sounds pretty good," Maple replies. You laugh. "A game that ends the world? How can a game end the world? That seems very hard to make believable," you say. Maple shrugs. "I think that's where 'suspension of disbelief' comes into play, Moon Moon." Suspension of what? Ugh, there she goes again, quoting things your Trainer had taught her. Human literature is very confusing; you've never read a book in your life. Maple has, though. Smart little cabbage she is.

"You know best, Maple; suspension of development or whatever you said it is. What else has been talked about besides frivolous human stories?"

The Venusaur blinks. "Not much," she says. "Just common things, honestly. Andrew seems very curious about Pokemon, though. It's almost like he doesn't know how to be one!" You cock your head. "Ah? Is that so?" She nods. "It's weird. I mentioned getting into a battle to him, and he just looked at me like I was speaking Chinese. Maybe he really has lost his memory," You look at the Braxien again. He's quietly talking with Yellow now, her laughing at something he's said. "Couldn't we just throw him into the fray of a battle to jog it?" you suggest. "He must have some sort of instinct left in his rotting mind."

"Moon Moon!"

"A zombie has no brain, Maple. Didn't you know that simple fact?"

"You are so idiotic sometimes, you know that? He's sitting right over there!"

"I don't care. What's he going to do, story me to death? If what you say is true, he can't even begin to try and use attacks or anything of the like."

Maple arches an eyebrow. "He has fists, Moon Moon. And teeth." You frown darkly. "I will break his teeth, then." The Venusaur rolls her eyes at you, a knowing expression on her face. "Sure you will. Now why don't you try and civil to his face?" You grumble under your breath and lash your tail. "But I do not want to!"

"It's called manners, Moon Moon. Learn them and practice them."

"Fine," you mutter as you step over to Andrew and look up at him. He turns at your footsteps and smiles. "Hello, Moony." You narrow your eyes at him. "Hello to you, too. May I inquire as to what you and my failure have been discussing besides webcomics and your apparent lack of basic concepts?" He frowns at you. "Basic concepts?" He pauses, brow furrowed in thought, and then sighs. "Oh, you mean what Maple was talking about before, okay. Um, not much really? Why, did you have something you wanted to add to the conversation?"

"No," you snap, "why would I want to dabble in any kind of that drivel? Actually, I want to ask you a question: do you have a wand?" Andrew arches an eyebrow. "A...wand? I don't think so. Besides, magic's fake." He crosses his arms with a annoyed expression. You give him a disappointed head shake. "But a Braxien must always have a wand," you says. "Even Tundra has his. Did you drop yours somewhere?"

He shakes his head. "I've never owned a wand in my life," he says. You shrug with a click of your tongue. "Well, I guess that means you'll never be able to fight if you don't have one. Your kind channels attack through their wands; to have no wand is to have no way to go on offense." You see him bite his lip in thought, and twitch one of your ears.

"I still have fists and teeth, though. Isn't that enough?" You shake your head. "Not at all. Your teeth will break if you even try to bite a Geodude, and your hands stand no chance in blocking a Hyper Beam. You are, without a wand, practically useless, in a battling sense." You smirk at Andrew as he muses over this. Before he can reply though, Yellow interjects.

"We can make him a new one! Right? It's just a stick!"

Andrew glances from Yellow to you and back. "Just a stick?" he says, and you don't meet his eyes. "Well, yes, but it must be a certain kind-!" Yellow shakes her head. "You're being silly, Moony! You can use any stick ever you want." Her eyes brighten and she jumps up from her spot against the tree. "Can we go find a stick? Can we? I mean, dinner isn't ready yet, is it? Please?" You grit your teeth and say cooly, "I don't think that is the wisest idea, Yellow. It's getting dark and dinner is ready." You look over your shoulder at Tundra and Talon as you yell, "Isn't it?"

"Yeah, it's done," Talon calls back. "C'mon and eat, y'all!"

You follow the rest of the little group as you all settle around the fire, nodding at Tundra as he places a plate at your feet. The rest of the party is served, and Talon lets out a caw. "Hot dogs and berries," he announces. "Enjoy!" You eagerly take a bite of a Pecha Berry, eyeing the Braxien sitting across from you. He's looking at one of the berries with a frown, turning it over in his hands. You chuckle under your breath and take another bite. _Still playing that game, are you? Humph._

The party eats in contented silence for a while, until that silence is snapped by Yellow- she jumps up, looking at the sky. You roll your eyes. "Failure," you ask, "what are you doing?" She frowns. "I heard something. Like a bird! A hurt bird!" Talon jumps from his roost on Maple's head. "A bird?" he questions, voice serious. You internally groan. Talon is always too caring; you think it has to do with all the egg hatching he and your Trainer did before all this. The Talonflame takes off into the sky, calling over his shoulder, "I'll be right back, everyone. Just gonna check."

You watch as he disappears over the trees and sigh loudly. "Way to show table manners," you mutter. If you have learned one thing about dining, it is you do not leave the table. Ever. Then again, you are dealing with your ruffians companions; you should not be surprised. Maple, who's sitting on your right, glances at you. "What are you thinking, Moon Moon? You're looking awfully annoyed," she says. You stick your nose up. "Couldn't he had waited to save this hurt bird or whatever? We are eating, for Arceus's sake!"

You hear flapping above you, and look up in shock. Talon's returned, and there's a Farfetche'd lying on his back. The rest of the team is on their feet in seconds. Yellow rushes over as Talon lowers himself to the ground, Andrew following her. Everyone crowds around, looking down at the newcomer. Tundra's eyes flash. "It's Ace," he announces. Yellow gasps, eyes widening. "Oh nooooo! He's our courier, right? What if something bad's happened?!"

Ace weakly lifts his head at the Heliodisk's panicked voice. "There is bad news, kid," he gasps, eyes lolling, "Professor Sycamore was attacked last night." With a shuddering sigh, he closes his eyes and goes limp. You struggle onto your back legs and try to nudge the bird awake, but Talon bites your paws.

"We'll get a nice dose of explaining' when he wakes up, I betcha." the Talonflame says. "We're sure as hell gonna need it all."


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: -crawls from hole- hi I bring update. I also apologize for any formatting or typos or grammar errors. Seriously though, Happy Valentine's Day- here is my gift. I only have two excuses for how late this is: being busy with my personal life and this chapter, for some godforsaken reason, being really hard to write. But it's here, and in this chapter we have Ace's explanation, some plot important items, and end with a beginning. Enjoy.**

* * *

**-Be Andrew Hussie.**

It's been a few hours since Talon arrived with Ace, and the brown bird hasn't woken back up yet. Whatever he'd said before passing out seems to still have everyone on edge; no one's gone back to eating yet, not even you. You are sitting on the ground, turning a strange pink fruit in your hands- it's too big to be a berry, no matter what Talon says, you think.

Maple sits to your left, gently wrapping and unwrapping her vines like hands wringing together. She seems to sense your reluctance to eat, because she pats you on the head and says, "It's safe to eat, silly. It's not gonna bite you or anything." The Venasaur smiles at you, and you smile back. With a twinge of hesitation, you nibble a little at the fruit. It's sweet, somewhat like a mix of pineapple and strawberry. You take a larger bite and shrug. It's certainly better than the common apple.

Your eyes glance around the party. Yellow is back at her game of washers, Moony sitting at the side and watching. Tundra is cleaning up the plates and putting away the extra food. He flicks a finger at the fire and it sparks to life again. You watch, bewildered, as the fire crackles back into nice sized flames. "How did he do that?" you ask under your breath. "He's a fire type, Andrew. Like you; you guys have a certain kind of hold over fire and heat." Maple answers. _That doesn't answer my question at all. Is it magic? No, magic isn't real..._

Talon and Ace have disappeared into a nearby tree; you can hear Talon's claws scraping against the bark. You strain your ears, and find you can just hear the Talonflame's murmuring: "Fierce like an eagle, graceful as a swan, lovely like a nightingale..." You realize with a start that he's singing. "Egg hatching song," the Venasaur whispers and you nod absently.

A washer suddenly hitting you upside the head knocks you out of your thoughts. You look at the metal piece with annoyance, and then relax as Moony comes over to retrieve if. He does not met your eyes as he picks it up in his mouth. "Yellow wants you to come play this game with her," he growls. "I suggest you accept her wishes." His eyes flash a bit and you swallow nervously as he stalks back over to Yellow. Something in his voice speaks danger, so it is in your best interest to go.

As you scramble to your feet, you hear the leaves of the tree behind you rustle and Talon curse under his breath, followed by a soft response to whatever Ace has asked him. You glance over your shoulder and look at them with large eyes; the large bird catches your eye as he turns from his friend. "He's awake enough," the Talonflame crows, and everyone drops everything: Yellow lets go of her washers and runs over with Moony at her side, Tundra has set down the remaining plates and hurried over, and Maple has repositioned herself to be facing the tree. You're all staring, waiting, silent.

Ace pokes his head out from behind Talon. "Hello, team," he says with a weak nod. "Hello, Ace!" Yellow yells back, the Farfetche'd flinching. "Are you feeling better now? Do you want to play a game? It's fun!" Ace smiles wearily at her and shakes his head. "Later, Yellow. I have some explanations to give, I think." He glances at Talon, who nods encouragingly. He takes a deep breath, as if to steady himself.

"As I announced earlier," he says, "Professor Sycamore has been attacked. Before you all go barraging me with questions, he is okay- just a little shaken. He wasn't hurt at all. Anyway, the attack occurred last night, around 2am, in the basement floor of the lab. From what I know, he'd been sorting away a few samples when someone got him from the shadows. The LPD are already swarming the scene, so none of you should feel obligated to go bounty hunting." He pauses for a moment, gaze resting on the Sylveon. Moony apparently notices this, because he shoots a frown back to the bird, who chuckles a little. "We've already received word that our own Trainer has been relocated," he continues," as have the other 'Dex holders, save oddly enough Trevor. No one can find him, it seems. I bet he'll be okay, though. He's a smart kid." The Farfetche'd take another long breath. "And that's all I can report."

"All you can," Moony pipes up, "or all you will? I sense withheld information. Tell us, bird."

Ace frowns at him. "I have nothing else to add," he answers, spreading his wings out like hands in a surrendering gesture, "so your senses or whatever they are wrong." The Sylveon grumbles under his breath but remains silent, apparently satisfied. You bite the inside of your cheek nervously as you ask, "Who exactly is Sycamore?"

Ace narrows his eyes at you. "I don't recognize that face," he murmurs. "Are you a new team member?" "More or less," you reply, meeting his gaze. He nods, mostly to himself. "What's your name?" he asks. "Andrew. Andrew Hussie,"

"Hmm, good name. As for the Prof., he's the one who raised Tundra until our Trainer got him, is one of the United Knowledge professors across the world, and is the current head of the global Bank security. He's also a good friend of all ours and of our Trainer's." The bird sighs deeply. "It means a lot about many things if he got attacked," You nod slowly, other questions burning on your tongue. You will save these questions, though; Ace looks very tired, and oddly wary. Perhaps he is still on edge from the news. Either way, he deserves a longer break from all this.

Yellow pouts at him. "So does that mean Meet Day isn't gonna happen?" Ace looks at her sadly. "Not for a while, no. I'm very sorry to be the bringer of bad news." The Heliodisk crosses her arms angrily. "I wanted to meet all of the old friends," she mutters under her breath. Moony sticks his nose up. "I'm happy this transfer is delayed. No rascally Umbreon should ever take my place," Ace fixes him with a stern gaze. "That's our Trainer's first ever Pokémon you're dissing. You should watch your mouth; it may get you hurt one day." He sighs loudly and address the group again. "I'm going back to sleep, though I have a message I need to pass on before I do- the Professor wants you all to report to Luminose for emergency Bank uploading."

Chaos erupts at his words.

"I refuse," Tundra says bluntly. "That system is dangerous and should have not been ever released." Maple and Moony lament his words, and Yellow cowers. "Isn't it dangerous?" she cries out. "Couldn't we all get erased from existence while uploaded from our Pokeballs?!" Moony stands, eyes bright gems of flaming sapphire. "I have heard of glitches causing corruption and permanent death from uploads," he growls, "I will not go. Nor will my failure. I hold my life too dear for such risky Miltank feces."

You glance at Maple worriedly. "What are they talking about?" "The new Bank transfer system," she says. "It helps long distance Pokémon get to Kalos, and helps Trainers store extra Pokémon that they can't fit in the PC. It's had reports of being buggy and potentially life-threatening to the uploaded Pokémon; that's why the others are so opposed." Ah, that's understandable. I wouldn't want to be corrupted or erased either, I think. Maple narrows her eyes. "I can't say I'm not reluctant as well," she says after a moment of hesitation. "It's a very new system, and no knows if it has a backup emergency release protocol, like the PC system does; it's just too new to tell yet." She shivers as she whispers quietly, "I do not want to be deleted by accident."

The Farfetch'd is holding his head in his wings. "Alright!" he yells hoarsely, making the group go quiet. "You don't want to be uploaded, he'll understand. I think the Professor just wants you all at the lab so he can have someone keep tabs on you." Sighs of relief meet his words- mostly sighs, anyway.

"But he was attacked inside the lab, yes? Why should we believe it is safe now? Humans and their skewed reasoning, makes me sick to my stomach." Moony glowers at Ace, licking a paw. "Well," he asks as the bird remains silent, "don't you have anything to say?" The Farfetche'd shrugs. "If the humans think they can protect you, let them. They're just trying to be nice."

The Sylveon rolls his eyes. "I need no protection," he says softly, but doesn't outright complain again. You frown a bit at him, and he notices. "It's true, zombie. I am more then capable of keeping myself alive. All of you, I don't really know- our Trainer and I did all we could to teach you. I just hope it sticked." He chuckles a little as he glance you up and down. "You, however, may need that protection. Since you're basically a Magikarp," Yellow's cheeks spark, and suddenly a small ball-like burst of electricity hits the back of Moony's head. You hear it snap and crackle as it dies away amidst Moony's curse.

Said Pokémon jumps around to face the Heliodisk. "What in the name of Arecus was that for?" he snarls, and she meets his gaze angrily. "Quit being mean to him!" she says. "He's not a Magikarp! You haven't even seen him fight before." Moony laughs at this. "He can't fight, Yellow. He doesn't even know how."

You see the Heliodisk's cheeks puff up. "That's only because he doesn't have a wand! You're such a meanie sometimes, Moony! Lay off him!" The Sylveon looks like he's going to say something more, but as Tundra come to stand over him, face stern, he shuts his mouth and turns his head away. "I'm just telling the honest truth of it all," he grumbles. Tundra's paws twitch, sparks flying from them. "Just keep your mouth shut for once, Moonington. Shut it until we reach Luminose City. Can you do that?"

"Of course I can," Moony replies, laughing softly. You tip your head to the side in a mock kind of head cock. Moony seems pretty damn oblivious to Tundra's anger, and you can't help but worry that the two are going to try and rip each throat's out. Or maybe he's not oblivious as he seems; perhaps he's doing to intentionally get under the Delphox's skin. You can't think any reason why he'd do that, though, especially not now.

Well, there is one idea that's lurking in the back of your mind. _Dogs fight for dominance, and these two are definitely both alpha material. Really do not want to be in the middle of that inevitable shitstorm, bleh. Boy, do I feel kind of sorry for these other guys; dealing with this on a daily basis would probably drive someone crazy. _

Tundra opens his mouth, then shuts it with a headshake and irritated pawpalm. "Idiot," he mutters, clenching his paws in and out of fists. Talon twists his head at the Delphox. "So we're going after all?" Tundra nods tersely. "As Ace said, the Professor will understand our reluctance. And it will be safer in there than out here; there is no one but ourselves on watch out here." The large bird flaps his wings and jumps from his post next to Ace. "I think that's smart enough, then."

Tundra turns to the group. "We leave now," he says, eyes flicking across each individual, "Talon, will you take care of Ace and the camp?" Talon nods. "Sure," he answers. The Delphox looks at Maple now. "I propose a team system," he says to her, "where there is a group of two and a group of three. I will have Yellow and myself be the two group, while you and these two are the other. Get along; we'll be right behind you." Maple glances between you and Moony with a sigh. "Wanna ride or walk, Andrew?" she asks.

"I'll walk, thanks," you answer. The Venasaur blinks respectively at you. "Okay then, I'll lead the way," With that, she begins walking, and you follow. Moony grumbles as he comes to walk on Maple's other side. "I don't see why we have to be with him," he mutters, eyes giving you an angry flash. "What if we're attacked?"

"Then you and me will fight," she answers. "We can teach Andrew later, after we get him a wand and are in a safer place them this." The Sylveon shrugs. "Seems reasonable, cabbage. Let us shut up now and get moving a little faster; all this strange stuff has started to make me a little ruffled and anxious around the collar." Maple begins to pick up her pace, Moony beginning to trot. You quickly increase your own steps.

Even though you're still confused, and even though you're not exactly happy about being with Moony, you're pleasantly surprised that you've begun to feel welcome by these strange creatures called Pokemon. It's been a odd kind of welcome, but a welcome none the less.

* * *

"What in the world is this?"

You step closer to Moony, who's half buried in a short prickly bush on the side of the forest path. He's pawing around in it with a sense of annoyance, and you can hear him grumbling. "What?" you ask and he audibly groans. "Some kind of disc or whatever," he says flatly, "and also a weird human necklace; both look really stupid." Your eyes widen. "A disc?" He growls. "Yes, a disc. Are you incompetent? Have you never seen a computer disc?"

You shake your head. "No, I have. I lost a disc recently, now that I think about it...can I see that one you have there?" He shrugs and tosses the two items from the depths of the bush at you, them landing at your feet. "Knock yourself out," he says through gritted teeth as he backs up from inside the bush and sits, trying to pull the leaves out of his fur.

You pick the pendant and disc up, leaning against the nearest tree, the oak Maple's waiting for you two under. She looks at the items in your hands with curiosity. "Found something?" You shrug. "I think so," you answer. "I hope so." With that you flip over the disc and your entire world stops.

_This is Disc Three. How the hell did it get here?_

You let out a huge sigh of relief, tracing the logo engraved in the plastic with a trembling finger. You don't really care at the moment how it got here, just that it's here and that somehow you didn't lose everything you'd worked on for so long. You pop open the case for a second and inspect the disc; the design on it looks a little weathered and stretched now, but the disc itself looks totally untouched, not even a single scratch. You laugh in excitement and Maple smiles at you. "Is it what you wanted?" You nod. "Yes. Yes, it was."

You turn your attention to the pendant. It's about the size of one of those plain round shortbread cookies, and the same thickness to boot. It's made of a off white stone, and engraved into its face is the SBURB logo, painted green. You think you can see the logo glowing just a little but when you blink there's not indication it ever was. You put the pendant on, blinking in surprise at how light it is; it felt much heavier in your palm.

Moony stalks over to you, glancing at the disc in your had and the pendant around your neck. "You can keep them," he says with an eye roll, continuing past you and Maple along the path. Said Venasaur shrugs and gives you a warm smile. "That looks nice on you," she says and you cannot help but blush a little. "Thanks," you say, following her as she begins after Moony.

For a while you all walk in silence along the path, enjoying the sun peeking in between the large leaves. Then a shadow passes overhead, shattering the peaceful sunlight. Moony stops warily, eyes narrowed at the sky. "Do you see that?" he says, his voice shaking just a little. You and Maple follow his gaze, and you can just make out some kind of flying creature above your party; it's stopped right above you and seems to be staring back down at you. You shiver. "What is that?" you ask, mostly to yourself. Maple frowns up at it. "It is not a bird," she says with awe and fear, "and it's most certainly not a Trainer on a bird Pokemon. The head is off, see? And the wings are much, much too big."

She gulps and you feel your own heartbeat start beat faster in fear. Whatever it is, you don't think you want anything to do with it.

**-Be the flying creature.**

You cannot be the flying creature unless you give it a name!

**[Enter name.]**

**-Creepy Bird...?**

Try as you hesitantly might, you cannot name this creature! He already has a name, silly. Try again, and guess it- you already have enough clues.

**-Jack Noir?**

Yes.

**-Be Jack Noir.**

You are now Jack Noir, and you're here to fuck shit up.

* * *

**A/N: bluh bluh how write dialogue and location skips. As you can see, Jack Noir/Spades Slick -I say slash because this one's a mix of the two- is our first canon character. And I am both excited for and dreading the next chapter because it's basically all him and I have no idea how to write his character w/o extreme OOCness. So if anyone has any pointers for writing his character for gods sake please PM me or leave a review. (Otherwise I'll just sit here at my keyboard and flail helplessly, hoping the story and characters write themselves. *commences said flailing*)**

**Thanks for reading. And dealing with my sporadic updates.**


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: i am so sorry. so sorry; this is late and probably OOC even though I'm trying not to heck up and sorry. in this chapter we have Jack, a fight, and a deal. enjoy (hopefully). ^^;**

* * *

**-Whose shit, exactly?**

If it was up to you, everyone's. But right now, you're under a strict list of who you can mess up. It makes you a little irritated but your employer -what an odd way to refer to them, huh- has a reward for this that you are not going to lose.

Since that reward is your life.

**-Alright, makes enough sense. Now examine those travelers down there.**

You've been watching this group of strange creatures for a while now. You can't tell if they're regular animals or some strange kind of mutant line, but not knowing this doesn't bother you very much anyway. They've provided a somewhat reliable source of entertainment for you- especially the younger looking fox thing and the ribbon-y dog. They've started to bicker again after noticing your presence above them; the ribbon dog has even made a few attempts to jump at the fox thing, but those were thwarted by the large turtle creature's tentacle vines.

You have half a mind to fly down there and get a closer look at them, but you can't. Not now. You have a very important job to do, don't you remember? You've only killed one out of what...the ten or so you've been assigned to? It's a disgrace, honestly. You shake your head in disgust.

Best be movi- wait. Wait, wait, wait. You narrow your eyes down at the fox thing again, descending a little in the air to hover maybe ten feet above him. He looks up and you can see the fear in his eyes and...the recognition? You frown down at him. He's wearing the same clothing as that guy you stabbed earlier, that's a little freaky. He blinks up at you, and you can see his ears panicking- twitch, twitch, twitch.

"Jack." he whispers, the word so soft and quiet you almost don't hear it. Almost. You know it is not a question; instead a declaration of your presence. You feel a smirk play at your lips. That is an acceptable greeting he's given- one of fear and awe.

**-Jack: Descend.**

You gently lower yourself to the ground, flapping your wings and stirring up dust as your feet slide a bit and solidify their hold. The fox thing has scrambled back, eyes wide. It is now you see the pendant around his neck, and this confuses you more. You have seen a pendant like this, somewhere. Yet the man you killed earlier was wearing no such thing. You scoff under your breath. Humans, fox things, same difference. It isn't like you haven't gotten a new accessory yourself- it's some sort of tracker bracelet, tight and biting around your wrist. You don't like it all too much, honestly...but that's not important.

The rest of the creatures have taken up offensive stances: the turtle vines are poised in the air, the yellow creature's neck ridge is flared up and crackling with electricity. The larger fox thing has drawn a torch, and it points it at you as its eyes begin to visibly glow. The ribbon-y dog thing...sits and stares rather dully at you. You arch an eyebrow at it and raise your palm to the large fox thing as it begins to move. Wait, your hand says. Wait just a moment before the strife. It seems to understand because it steps back, eyes still glowing, still on you.

You turn your attention to the ribbon dog. It meets your eyes with a audible sigh as you growl, "What in the world are ya doing, kid? You'll die if you just sit there." It yawns, ribbons flipping like a hand toward you. "I'm not afraid of you," it says in a drawling voice, "You're just some apparition of hacking. Nothing more but despicable ones and zeros." Its eyes flash. "You can't kill me now, anyway; I still have full HP." It rises gracefully to its feet, giving you a disdainful sniff. "What type are you?" You stare at it, hand dropping to rest on the hilt of your sword. It sighs. "Not very talkative are you?" The large fox thing growls and you flick an ear at it. Be still, the flick says. Wait. Let it do whatever it's doing.

The ribbon-y dog walks right up to you, seemingly undisturbed by how you tower above it. It glares up at you, blue eyes narrowed and annoyed. "What even are you, hack? Some fake creature made by a human who wanted to play with legendary power?" it says, frowning deeply. You growl deep in your throat. This thing's really getting on your nerves. It doesn't know anything, does it? It rolls its eyes. "Whatever. Your origins don't matter to me; they're probably just as low as your creator's. What do you want with us, anyway?" You hear the younger fox thing take a sharp breath, and you realize it's hurt and a little angry. About what? That this dumb pastel canine isn't dead yet, maybe?

You can change that easily.

**-Don't. That larger fox is still watching you. This pastel thing's a friend of it.**

Ah, fine. You grumble under your breath. Pastel ribbon fuck lives another day. The larger fox thing has pulled the ribbon-y dog back, and is holding three red and white orbs in the air. The orbs glow softly with the same light that runs around the fox's eyes. "Moony, return," it says and the ribbon dog looks at it in shock. "Wait, what?! You can't be seri-" Moony's voice cuts off as it's sucked into the ball as red light.

"Maple, return. Yellow, return."

The same red light suction phenomenon happens again with the turtle and lizard. The larger fox thing tosses the orbs at the younger one, who catches them with a surprised gasp. "Run," the older fox barks, "Run down this route until you reach the city. Ask the Skiddo for the way to the lab, they'll help you."

"But what about-!"

"That's an order, Andrew. Go!"

Andrew hesitates, meets your eyes, blinks. You curl your lip at him and he flinches, turning tail and fleeing into the woods next to the path. You huff quietly at him as his footsteps dissolve into distant patter. The larger fox looks up at you, eyes still glowing, still waiting. You draw your sword; the fox ignites its torch with a flick of its wrist.

"Name?"

It blinks at you. "What?" it asks, voice wary.

"What's your name?" you repeat.

It swallows, the rise and fall of its throat visible. "...Tundra." it answers. You say nothing, only twitching your ear as you rise up from the ground a little. Tundra watches you, waiting. Then his eyes pulse strange blue and he leaps at you, swinging his flaming torch- the fire leaps, grows, rushes at you. You smirk as you teleport just out of its path, reappearing and conjuring up your own fire, a blaze of green erupting along your sword.

The fight begins.

**_[Strife!]_**

You parry the fire flinging at your face with your sword, the heat of both fires billowing your fur back. Tundra's eyes flash, and he lashes out with a ball of pink wobbly energy. You teleport again out of its way, and slash at his side. He roars as the blade slices deep, and flames erupt from the torch right at you. They engulf you for a moment, but you fly out of then and then five back down at the fox, launching a fireball at him. Tundra throws his own fireball, and the two meet, pushing against each other. Yours overpowers his, flying into him. He yelps, and you smirk again.

You land and jump at him, slicing at his arm. He dodges out of the way, and his eyes gleam with the weird blue light. He twists his head at you violently, and suddenly you're thrown across the path, head first into a tree. You recover quickly, slightly disturbed. How did he do that? You shake your head and teleport behind him, stabbing him in the back. He howls, but doesn't kneel over and die like he should have- the place where you had stabbed at is reforming like jelly, closing up the wound to a deep but not impairing injury. He spins around and fire slaps you in the face. The heat hits you like a ton of bricks and somewhere, on the side of your head, your fur catches on fire. You strike out again, this time knocking him back.

He's panting and you take the opportunity to jump at him again, spearing him right through the head. His body seems to falter for a moment, and you about to step back and congratulate yourself when his head does the jelly thing and suddenly your sword is simply sunk into his eye. Tundra's eyes flame up, and your sword goes spinning into the air, impaling itself into a tree. He growls. "Still have a third of my HP, can't kill me yet if that's your intention." he huffs, flame in his torch flaring up. You quickly teleport over to the tree and yank your sword from the trunk. Tundra is fast too; he's behind you before you can turn around. Sharp pain shoots through your back and you spin around to face him with a pained screech, lashing out- your blade slices clean through his right arm. He freezes as he registers that you've just made him an amputee. You see his jaw clench and he throws a punch with his remaining hand that slams into your face. The pain is minimal, but enough that you are momentarily dazed. Then you retaliate, blowing him backward with a fireball.

You jump on him as he tries to get back into his feet. Tundra kicks you hard in the stomach, over and over as fast as he can. You take each hit with an inhale and a tightening of your stomach, growling at him as you slug him across the face. His bloodied eye twitches, and you're lifted off of him and thrown hard against the ground. He then attempt to tackle you, but he misses, so you teleport out of his second leap's path just as he lands where you were a second ago. He jumps up, spins around and faces you, throwing multiple fireballs at you in desperation. You take to the sky to avoid them, dodging almost all of them- one hits you square in the side and sends you spiraling down to earth. Tundra takes this chance and lands another hit, barreling you over again. You get back up onto all fours and shoot off a spiral of green at him; he's blown back long enough that you can get back onto your feet. You meet his eyes, white to amber. They spark with something deeper then anger and protectiveness- some kind of dignity lies smoldering in those eyes. You give him the tiniest nod. You have to respect that kind of thinking. He raises an eyebrow for a moment, and then charges at you.

For a half blind, one armed thing he's got good aim- he manages to pin you against a tree and hold his torch to your neck for a few moments before you teleport out of his grasp and hover in the air. You curse as you feel blood ooze down your neck; it still feels as if it's on fire, and the blood is running hot and thick. You think he heard you, because he looks over his shoulder at you and makes his weird glow eyes flash again. This time you're pulled down right to the ground with a bone shattering crash- you actually feel something in your lower body snap. Then you're flung up again and then down again; this time your head is the part of you that makes contact with the earth, and it hurts like hell. You grit your teeth and try to teleport away but it seems this hold is just a little stronger.

You're held at Tundra's level and he calmly walks toward you, standing in front of you with a frown. With a flourish he jabs his torch against your lower jaw and holds it there. You want to scream as the flame easily burns away your fur and works on your skin. With a slight panic, you try to teleport again and succeed. You leap up into the air, raising high enough that the fireballs he emits can't hit you. You raise your hand to your chin; it comes back slightly black and caked with blood. Now both your throat and chin are half burned. Great.

You glare down at the fox thing. He's looking around, ears pricked. You inhale and the radar ears turn. You quietly fly around him in a circle, his ears following your every wing flap. It's a game of waiting, him waiting for you to come lower, you waiting for the perfect time to strike. This goes on for a while, your blood cascading down to the path below, creating a ring around Tundra. (You can tell he notices because he gives it a satisfied look.)

Then he closes his eyes, just a for a moment.

You teleport and strike him down.

He writhes beneath your hold, blood finally, finally pouring from the non reforming wound you've given his chest. You hold your blade at his throat and are about to slice it clean open when he says in panic, "Mercy! Mercy! Have mercy! I can do something really important for you if you let me live!" You hesitate at his offer, though you do press a little into his fur, just enough to draw a tiny dot of red. "What kinda offer?" you ask gruffly, locking eyes with him. He pants, eyes wide; you can see the extent of the damage you've done to his right eye. It's stabbed right in the pupil, a gash that drips scarlet down his face.

"Whereabouts of people, supplies, anything- I'm a champion of Kalos, I know literally everything. If there's anything you need, I'm the one to ask." His voice is edged with desperation and pain, and you smirk a little. "I want two things," you say, and his eyes widen. "One is the full name and origins of that young fox ya sent off. The other is that I want you to remove this thing on my wrist with that glowy power you have." He inhales deeply, breath shaky. "Fine," he says, "but you'll release me? Correct?"

Despite how much you want to shake your head, you nod. "Yeah, that's my end of the deal. So spill yours."

"He says his name is Andrew Hussie. We don't know where he came from, Moonington just found him in one of the graves here. Apparently he dug up the guy when he followed a blood trail in woods that lead him to the grave. I don't know anything else." He takes another breath, shallower then before. You're aware of how much blood you've both lost from your wounds; you're soaked in both his and your blood. "Okay, now that thing," he says, eyeing your wrist. You lift your arm back a little and take your blade off his neck so he can see it better. It's a simple thick but lightweight bracelet on the outside, but you can hear the ticking and whirring and clicking inside. It makes your nervous.

His eyes glow, fainter, and the bracelet takes on the same glow. For a moment it seems as if it's working, because you can see blue pulsating cracks forming on the bracelet's surface. Then Tundra groans and the glow fades. "I apologize," he says weakly, "it's too...strong for me at the moment." You growl and lightly slash against his neck. He gasps in pain. "I sent Andrew towards Luminose," he breathes in a whisper, "follow him and ask him to remove the bracelet. Tell him it's a order from me. Please just don't murder me here...please, I beg of you." He shoves his now unlit torch towards you. You silently take it away into your inventory.

**-Ah, accept the poor bastard's plea, Jack. He's half dead by now anyway.**

You push off of him, wiping the blood from your chin and then storing your sword back into your chest. You lean over his form, taking in every detail -each patch of discolored fur, each scar- and wonder how it got to the point that he'd sacrifice his teammates safety for his own life. He's breathing ever so slightly, breaths ragged and inconsistent. He struggles to raise his head and look at you. He looks as if he wants to speak, but can only pant in wavering tones. You shake your head. "You must have the spider girl's luck to have been spared today. Be happy I chose to accept."

With that you take to the skies, towards the gleaming city.

* * *

**A/N: *flails nervously at keyboard because judgement* hope you enjoyed this chapter. please tell me if I hecked up. **


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